Eola, IL 1810

Eola, IL is an ex-CB&Q located on the east side of Aurora, IL. The yard sits on both sides of the famed Chicago Subdivision Triple Track, which can see over 100 trains a day (thanks in large part to Metra's busiest line - Chicago-Aurora). For years the yard was nothing more than an outlying yard, with the bulk of its work being the blocking and reblocking of vehicle trains. This was necessitated by the vehicle ramp located in nearby Naperville, IL. However, once that ramp closed, Eola faced an uncertain future.

Fortunately, an increase in intermodal operations at nearby Cicero Yard forced that yard to push most of its regular work out since it was expanded into an even bigger intermodal yard. Some of the business meant for closer to Chicago industries was sent to Western Ave., just south of downtown. The rest went west to Eola, which has now become the main manifest yard for BNSF traffic on the former CB&Q/BN lines. (Ex-Santa Fe lines have their own yards.)

Canadian National's Leithon Subdivision (ex-Elgin, Joliet & Eastern) cuts across the BNSF main line just east of the yards. There are connecting tracks between the railroads on the west side of the CN line to facilitate BNSF trains heading south to Logistics Park Chicago as well as sand trains going north to Wisconsin. The CN line has had an additional main put in from the south wye switch north through the area to help with the increase in traffic since taking over the EJ&E.

Layout

The main map runs with west on the left and east to the right. The CN line is north-south through here. CN has no industries located on this map and is strictly runthrough, although a number of interchange trains will head into the BNSF East Yard for forwarding.

BNSF has a West Yard (north side) and an East Yard (south side), although both names are now mostly symbolic due to the mixed nature of the yard's current business. Spurs can be found on the south side of the East Yard that serve a handful of small industries. To the east of the yard is a pocket yard that serves another small group of industries in Naperville. This is where the former auto ramp was located. Industries here include a plastic zipper plant, a warehouse, and the Post Division of Kraft Foods. International Paper also has a spur off Main 3 between the main yard and the Naperville pocket yard. There is also a Lumber 84 spur located off Main 1 that is not included in the map. Metra's Route 59 commuter station is also located on the map and has the distinction of being the most heavily-used Metra station outside Chicago Union.

Operations

Eola is home to several locals and is also a major interchange point with the CN. Westbound locals serve the Montgomery, IL area and provides BNSF service to Rochelle, IL. Eastbound locals serve the Naperville industrial area, and shuttle traffic to Western Ave. for work there and the few remaining industries near Cicero. Transfers also run from Eola in the form of both Road Switchers (to BRC's Clearing Yard) or H-trains (to Norfolk Southern's Calumet Yard). Through trains also work Eola, with the H-GALCNI picking up cars bound for Canadian National and numerous through trains out of Clearing Yard calling to pick up westbound traffic. CN terminates two locals in the East Yard, which then can become either H-CNIGAL or H-CNIKCK depending on their mix of traffic. Eola also originates an H-EOLNTW to Northtown Yard in Minneapolis. This train works La Crosse, WI, which means it is usually heavy with Home Shop For Repair cars heading to the vID of Savanna, IL.

Illinois Railway also visits Eola, coming in from a connection to the BNSF at Montgomery, a couple of miles to the west. Most of their traffic is sand, with whole unit trains for a single destination being interchanged to BNSF (IR 207), or a mixed bag of various destinations (and some other manifest traffic) in the form of IR 206.

CN contributes a lot of sand to Eola as well, going to various destinations west on the BNSF, typically frac sand going to oil drilling sites. Several symbols are used for these trains, depending on where they originated on the CN.

Eola also sees several runthroughs as the gateway to Chicago, with unit trains for CSXT and NS passing through. Cicero is the eastern terminus for the Northern Transcon, so many intermodal trains to/from that yard pass as well.